Flaunting her fashion flair
After a gruelling series of interviews, uMhlanga resident, Khanyi Malimela, has been selected as one of the 19 talented designers to showcase their collections at the DFF on Saturday.
NOT everyone is born with a flair for fashion, but uMhlanga resident, Khanyi Malimela’s love of fabrics and textures has recently earned her a top spot amongst the newcomers in the industry as a finalist in this year’s Durban Fashion Fair (DFF).
Despite growing up within a family of academics, the 29-year-old broke the mould to pursue her passion. After a gruelling series of interviews, she has been selected as one of the 19 talented designers to showcase their collections at the DFF on Saturday.
The designers, selected from thousands of entries, have had the opportunity to rub shoulders and receive mentorship from two of the most respected names in the industry, Greg Wallis and Terrence Bray.
Malimela’s collection for the DFF has been inspired by the ‘monster leaf’. “It was very weird. I am not a nature person, but I could not get this image of a leaf out of my head. So I did some research and came across the monster leaf,” she explained.
She has paired the leaf pattern with various textured, green, grey and purple fabrics as well as some green accessories.
“I would describe my style as minimalist. I enjoy designing for the woman on the street. My philosophy is to keep things simple and grounded,” she said.
Before her glamorous adventure within the DFF, Malimela studied public relations and had been working within the retail industry. However, she soon realised that her current career was not fulfilling her passion.
“I always knew I loved fashion. My mum used to sew while we were growing up. I enjoyed playing around with textures and fabrics. I finally plucked up the courage and enrolled in a BA Consumer Studies degree (majoring in fashion retail) at Unisa, and the rest, as they say, is history,” she explained.
